By Ben McPherson, Guest Contributor to EGF Middle East Research
February 2013

Key points:

• Religious fighters take hold in Syria
• How it happened: Alawites, Syrian power and the Ba’th Party
• The rise of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood
• Sectarianism taking hold
• Part of a global power game
• The road to nowhere.
  READ MORE

• Ben McPherson  |  Published on EGF: 20.02.2013
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By Nora Renger, EGF Middle East Researcher
February 2013

Key points:

• The “wrath of Islam” is hardly novel
• Nor is the wrath of Christiandom
• Questioning the critique of morality
• Yet Muslims have always rejected violence
• Although they will not tolerate injustice
• “Islamic politics” rising across the Muslim world
• Turmoil following revolutions a threat to stability
  READ MORE

• Nora Renger  |  Published on EGF: 20.02.2013
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ISSUE # 04
02/11/2013
On 7 February 2013, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Fule said in Kiev that Ukraine must meet the conditions required for signing an association agreement by November this year. He said this at a meeting with Prime Minister Mykola Azarov. READ MORE

• Gorshenin Weekly  |  Published on EGF: 13.02.2013  |  External Relations
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Transition in Ukraine: A Critical Assessment and Current Challenges
January 2013

When the communist bloc disintegrated between 1989 and 1991, Western understanding of transition had been largely influenced by authoritarian transitions in Latin America and Southern Europe since the 1960s. Few scholars of post-communist transition have sought to develop a theoretical framework that encapsulates all four aspects of the quadruple transition: political and economic reform, state and nation building. Few scholars have grappled with the added complication of newly independent states, such as Ukraine, not only introducing political and economic reform simultaneously but also building institutions and a state while forging a unified nation-state. READ MORE

• EGF Editorial  |  Published on EGF: 12.02.2013
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Transition in Turkey: A Critical Assessment and Current Challenges
January 2013

Following the footsteps of Kemal Atatürk, post-WWII Turkish political leaders kept the Western-oriented and secular orientation of the country. The Kemalist leadership was based on six main untouchable principles: “republicanism,” “nationalism,” “populism,” “secularism,” “reformism” and “statism.” READ MORE

• EGF Editorial  |  Published on EGF: 12.02.2013
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By Claudia Nocente, Research Associate Global Security
February 2013

Key points:

• Egypt’s new administration between international praise and domestic unrest
• Morsi assumes pharaonic powers in an attempt to rid Egypt of Mubarak judges
• The felool take another shot in Egyptian politics
• The generals remain silent
• The Egyptian economy sinks

• Claudia Nocente  |  Published on EGF: 12.02.2013  |  External Relations
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ISSUE # 03
02/04/2013
On 30 January 2013, Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara said that Ukraine would remain a reliable transit country for Russian gas sent to the EU. He said this at a meeting with European Commissioner for Energy Guenther Oettinger. READ MORE

• Gorshenin Weekly  |  Published on EGF: 08.02.2013  |  External Relations
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Insights into Turkish Domestic and International Politics during January 2013
By John VanPool, EGF Turkey and Black Sea Regional Analyst

Key Points:

• Reports leak about the training of Turkish soldiers for missions to secure Syria’s weapons of mass destruction.
• Construction is underway on Kurdish Regional Government’s pipeline projects to Turkey. The project continues to be a thorn in the side of Baghdad, alienating it from Ankara as well as Erbil.
• KRG-Turkish cooperation is also key in Ankara’s efforts at creating a counterweight to the PYD in Syria, with pro-Masoud Barzani groups seen as a better option than PKK sympathetic militant groups.
• Turkey’s judicial and penal systems come under scrutiny despite substantial EU funding to improve prisoners living conditions.
• In a move to diversify away from cleaner gas-powered electrical production plants, tenders for coal powered plants are on the rise. The growth in coal power plants is part of a government effort to lessen reliance on gas supplies from Russia and Iran.

• EGF Editorial  |  Published on EGF: 07.02.2013  |  External Relations
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A Snapshot of Key Developments in the External Relations of the Russian Gas Sector
by Jack Sharples, EGF Associate Researcher on the external dimensions of Russian gas

Key points:

• Gazprom is under pressure from all sides. European energy companies request further gas price discounts, export volumes fell in 2012 and are expected to remain weak in 2013, PM Medvedev suggests that Gazprom’s export monopoly could be revoked, and Gazprom faces criticism from Europe and the United States over its bid for Greece’s state-owned gas utility, DEPA.
• Gazprom slaps Naftogaz with a $7bn bill for failing to purchase sufficient amounts of gas in 2012.
• The Czech section of Nord Steam, Gazelle, is launched as Gazprom CEO, Alexei Miller, declares an expansion of Nord Stream to be ‘feasible’ despite the pipeline operating at well below capacity since its launch
• Gazprom and the Croatian State-owned energy company, Plinacro, to set up a joint venture in mid-2013 for the construction of a spur from South Stream into Croatia, while Serbia is set to grant South Stream ‘national status’
• Gazprom signs an agreement with Novatek to produce LNG on the Yamal Peninsula, with Asia the predicted export destination
• Gazprom lobbies the Russian government for Shtokman tax breaks as the Russian government considers revoking the Gazprom-Rosneft monopoly on offshore gas and oil production in Russia

• EGF Editorial  |  Published on EGF: 06.02.2013  |  External Relations
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ISSUE # 02
01/28/2013
Former Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko has rejected the charges of organizing the murder of politician and businessman Yevhen Shcherban, her daughter Yevheniya said on 22 January 2013. READ MORE

• Gorshenin Weekly  |  Published on EGF: 30.01.2013  |  External Relations
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